Today's marketing communications landscape is changing as mass markets are fragmenting. Companies are developing more focused marketing programs in order to build stronger relationships with customers, as improvements in technology are helping marketers keep track of consumer needs. Since mass-marketing advertising methods are often inefficient due to a low level of customization, a new type of marketing, known as direct marketing is emerging as the most efficient way of building brand awareness and preference.
The Internet is increasingly used as an effective customer communication and relationship enhancer. Advertisers want to reach a large number of customers at the lowest cost/customer. An inexpensive means for delivering advertising content is through the use of banner advertising. Unfortunately, Internet mass-marketing efforts have been shown to have a relatively low impact since Internet users are becoming more experienced and developing what is known as “banner blindness”.
Another Internet mass-marketing means is the use of bulk email. Unfortunately, traditional bulk email advertising is not directed to specific target markets. Additionally, customers have come to perceive receiving unsolicited email messages as intrusive and bothersome. With bulk email, the customers may access their email accounts on daily or weekly basis which reduces the advertising exposure time. The results of bulk email are that either the customer simply ignores the message or develops a negative opinion about the sender.
Studies show that marketing efforts are efficient when the customer has an interest in the product/service being marketed.
There exists therefore a need for a method of delivering advertising messages that offers repeated exposure, at a low cost/customer and provides customer value.